A Twist In The Myth
by Col. Sayaka Miki
Summary: Five Magical Girls trapped are trapped by an immensely powerful foe who pits them against each other in a fight for their lives. One of them will have to stay behind in the hellish world created by their monstrous new enemy. Tart Magica spoilers, divergent timeline, story direction partially determined by dice rolls. Warning: Contains gratuitous Heavy Metal references.
1. Corbeau's Inferno

_"But I do not love you any longer."_

Minou broke her sister's soul gem in her hand and dropped the shattered pieces to the ground. Corbeau's body hit the ground in the next instant. There was silence around them. Tart didn't know what to do now.

Minou looked down at her fallen sister. "At the very least, I will tell Lapin that you died honorably in battle."

Tart was shaking. "Why... why would you do that?"

Riz ran up to join her friend, having seen what had just transpired. She shot a furious look at Minou. "That's pretty heartless. Wasn't she your older sister?"

"Yes." Minou looked up at her. "My older sister by blood. A very foolish older sister."

Tart shouted at her. "How can you say things like that without a trace of emotion? You aren't Human or a Magical Girl anymore!" She readied her sword. "You're already a Witch with a heart that's rotten all the way through!"

From behind her cat mask, Minou laughed. "If that's the case, what will you do, La Pucelle?"

"I will do what Magical Girls are supposed to do!" She slashed the air with her sword, glowing with energy. "I will destroy you."

"Well, that is something to look forward to." She laughed again. "However, I am afraid that I must retreat from the field of battle..."

* * *

 **Not long ago...**

"You. Creature. Tell me now. What is your purpose here?"

Kyubey smiled up at the masked girl. "If you mean here on Earth, I'm here to create Magical Girls in order to save the universe. I make contracts with young girls and grant their wishes, and in exchange they become Magical Girls and fight Witches." His tail flicked innocently behind him. "If you mean right here and now, I'm here to talk to you."

She stared down at him. "What if I've already made a contract?"

"This is all at my discretion and mine alone. I can make a contract with you, but only one." He casually hopped up onto the table in the center of the room. There was no one else around for the time being, but she was beginning to worry that her rare time alone was nearing its end. Kyubey was now more level with her, staring not into her eyes, but into her soul. "Contracts with inferior beings are irrelevant."

That was it. "I want you to make me a Magical Girl. One of _your_ Magical Girls."

"Very well then. What is it you will wish for, Corbeau?"

* * *

Low muffled laughter cut the tense atmosphere. Riz grabbed Tart's shoulder, pulling her back. Everything about this seemed suddenly very wrong. Minou turned to look back down at her dead sister, whose soul gem she had just personally crushed. A strange sensation started creeping up her spine as she saw that Corbeau was not quite so dead as she ought to have been. Staggeringly, she pushed herself up and back onto her feet, wobbling back and forth for a moment, but she continued to laugh. Not like Minou's amused little laugh. Corbeau's laugh had always been more harsh than her sisters', but now it carried something more with it.

Corbeau's cold grey eyes fixed on her younger sister. "So I guess I was right about you, Minou."

"How..." Minou stepped back, retreating towards her enemies as Riz pulled Tart out of the way. "How are you standing?"

Corbeau looked down at herself. She was indeed standing, and she could see her the broken pieces of her soul gem on the ground in front of her. She turned her hands over in front of her, staring at them intently. "It feels... strange. But that creature was right after all. Contracts with inferior beings are irrelevant." She looked back to her sister. "I think... you'll find that, since you did just destroy my soul gem, the one from the contract I made with our... _your_ benefactor... that contract has effectively been terminated."

Minou frowned. "You can't turn on her now. Where will you go? With them?" She waved dismissively at Tart and Riz, just as Melissa and Elisa appeared through the trees. "There's nowhere else for you to go."

Corbeau shook her head. "La Pucelle's angel was just the way out I needed. His contract encapsulated my soul in a much more... refined place. Much safer." She took off her gloves and cast them aside, revealing the small ring on her finger. "A far smaller target, and with such an obvious one in plain sight no one would think to look elsewhere. Plus, I've added one more wish, all my own, to my ever-growing abilities. It's the best one yet." She narrowed her unmasked eyes at her sister. "Would you like to see it?"

Behind Minou, Melissa was furiously shaking her head. Elisa elbowed her. "Calm down. She won't unleash the Black Plague with her sister right here."

Riz glanced back at the two of them. "Her sister just tried to kill her. I wouldn't be surprised."

The world around them began to blur and fade as red bolts of lightning danced along every surface. The ground broke apart, the grass burning up as jagged stone erupted from below. The ground behind them fell away. Elisa lost her footing and tumbled backward over the edge. Melissa managed to grab her hand and keep her from falling at the last moment. As she hung over the new abyss, she could see the orange glow of fire far below them. Melissa pulled her back, and they landed on the reddish rock that now made up the platform they'd been given in this piece of hell.

Riz looked around in every direction, including up, to see only darkness, fire, and rock. She had a guess that the stone platform they were on was floating through the void on the end of a long chain, as the only things she could see around them were more rocks, all unnervingly chained to something too far away to be seen. All the chains, though, led in the same direction.

Tart looked over to Minou. She stood perfectly still, like the slightest move might attract the attention of some massive beast. Tart's mind went elsewhere, though. Corbeau was gone, and so was Tart's beloved France. She shouted at the void around them. "What have you done!? What did you do to... to everything!?"

Riz sighed. "Tart, I don't think..."

Corbeau's voice answered, booming through the air. **"What have I done to it? I have done nothing but to the five of you. My most hated enemies... well, and the redhead."**

Elisa shouted at Corbeau, wherever she was. "Well, I am sorry! Give me another chance, I'll make you hate me too!"

 **"That won't be necessary."** Their rocky platform shook violently, knocking Riz and Minou over. Only Tart remained standing, having planted herself using her sword. **"This is merely a demonstration."**

Riz pulled herself over to the edge of the platform, looking over and into the fire below. There, curling up the side of the rock that they were all on top of, something held them in place. Further along, she could see another one in each direction. Gigantic fingers belonging to a hand that was below them, hidden under the rock. She turned to Tart and the others. "'Demonstration'. Emphasis on 'Demon', I'm guessing."

They all looked back up to find Corbeau's gaze bearing down on them. She was enormous, and it was clear that her hand now held them in place. Her lips curled into a smile wide enough to consume the rocky platform with them on it. She wore no mask over her eyes, which glowered at them malevolently. The gleaming steel of a silvery scythe blade arced through the air away from her, the giant weapon held firmly in her other hand.

 **"Behold. I have been granted power beyond that of the dark gods who ruled the world before the time recanted by Moses."**

Riz stood and called up at her. "Who granted you this power? You were always a monster, but what kind of evil being have you become now?"

Tart nodded, jabbing her sword in Corbeau's direction. "Now we truly must destroy her! There's no telling how many she could kill like this! Maybe even the entire world! It has to end before it goes any farther!"

 **"Though try as you might to flatter me, you only insult my abilities. Destroy the world? How narrow your mind. I have a much greater object in my sight. But first, I want to... play a game with the lot of you."**

Before they could inquire as to the nature of this 'game', she turned and threw the rock in her hand. Riz lost her footing and collapsed onto the rocky face as it flew through the void. She managed to keep hold, as the others mostly were able to keep their footing. Minou, however, was tossed off the platform the instant it was thrown and disappeared into the darkness. Snapping out of the trance she'd been stuck in, Minou lashed out with her weapon, which wrapped around the chain attached to the stone platform.

Tart looked ahead to see that they were careening towards another rock platform and were going to crash into it. There were other rocks scattered around it, some larger and some smaller, that offered an opportunity to avoid the collision. She shouted to her friends. "We have to jump!"

Elisa grimaced. "I don't like this!"

Riz looked up, seeing what was coming. "Oh... this is gonna hurt."

They jumped together, pushing off the falling platform and towards the nearest stationary rocks. They all managed to land on their feet just as the two rocks behind them collided, both shattering into thousands of shards that flew in every direction. Minou effortlessly leaped off the chain and floated down to another nearby platform. She took a deep breath and sighed in relief. She knew better than to think it was over, but she had survived the first assault from something beyond her understanding. She considered it a success.

Corbeau's voice echoed around them. **"I have decided that you may leave of your own volition. The way out is in the direction you have been going, but I must warn you that the doorway only admits one at a time. To open it, you must use another key each time. Unfortunately for you, there are only four keys."** Her laughter rang out, shaking the air.

Riz glanced back to where Corbeau had been standing, seeing the colossal figure stalking away. "So we find these keys, and she'll simply let us leave? I doubt it will be that easy."

"What about Minou?" Tart pointed over to where the other girl was making her own way from one platform to another. "If she gets out before us, we won't be able to all escape."

Elisa nodded. "And she's only got to find one. Assuming we're not just being lied to and toyed with for fun, two of us should head straight for the exit and keep her from getting out while the other two find three of the keys. She'll absolutely find one of them before us anyways, so we need to beat her there."

Tart looked in the direction they had to go. "Alright. We'll stick together as long as we can and split up when we need to. Let's go."


	2. This Is A Totally Deep Hole

Minou found her mind jumping back and forth between smugly confident and mortally terrified. She knew her sister would have never harmed her before, but something had clearly changed. Corbeau had become some totally different being from what she was before. There was no telling what she might decide to do to the little sister who had just carried through with an act that should have killed her. One thing was for sure; this was a very bad situation she was in. She understood that only four of the five of them would be escaping, but it seemed fair to assume she would have an easier time at it. She could find just one key, damn the rest, and let the heroes squabble over who deserved to return to the land of the living.

Unfortunately, her idea of an easy escape from a likely vengeful older sister who now controlled vast powers hinged on the belief that she need only find a key and reach the door first. Corbeau's explanation had mentioned nothing of any foes she might encounter along the way, or any obstacles Corbeau might herself place along their path. To make matters worse, Minou had seen other giant figures moving about in the distant red haze. She was sure they would get involved at some point, and it wasn't going to be a small chore to deal with them. She already had her suspicions about what dark intellects commanded those massive bodies, and she hoped she would never have the opportunity to confirm or disprove those suspicions.

As she leaped gracefully from one floating rock to the next on her way to where she hoped a key waited for her, she caught sight of movement out of the corner of her eye. She frowned at the thought of having to deal with those pesky heroes so soon. It wasn't a fight she was looking for at all, but certainly not right away. Although, when she thought about it, everything would be all the more easy on them if she just killed one of them. She just had to send one tumbling into the fiery void below. Didn't matter who, even.

She turned to look behind her, where the movement had been, but saw not a sign of anyone. She knew La Pucelle would stand out in this terrain, so it struck her as odd. She quickly determined that she had only seen more of the floating rock platforms, as they shifted around rather liberally. Letting out her breath, she turned back to continue on her way, then stopped cold. There, ahead of her, on the very next platform she had been heading to, were several large Ravens. They stood still, staring at her with dull red eyes, though not quite still enough to make her think they were statues. They were quite clearly real, and she could see blood caked on their beaks. A couple even had scraps of flesh hanging from their mouths.

Each of these birds was nearly as tall as her, the tops of their heads equal to her shoulders. She took an extra moment to recount them. Seven of them. Seven hulking Ravens, feathers thick and beaks sharp, all staring at her like they'd found their next meal. One of the Ravens hopped closer to the edge of the platform, cocking its head curiously. The others bobbed around, waiting to take flight and swarm her the moment she turned and ran. She didn't intend to turn and run.

The Raven closest to her hopped across the gap between them, not even bothering to spread its wings. Its claws scraped the ground as it landed in front of her, and smaller loose rocks scattered at its feet, but none of the birds made a sound from their mouths. The Raven lunged at her, striking the air with its beak, then hopped back again. It watched her reaction, seeing how she would respond to its aggression. She knew that there was no guarantee of her survival if they were to attack her all at once, but they appeared to also know the same of her. Each could sense the danger the other posed.

Minou unleashed her weapon, coiling her whip around her. "What an insult. My sister sends crows to _murder_ me. I'll have none of it." Lashing out at the venturous Raven, she watched with mild pleasure as it was torn to shreds by her weapon. Black blood and feathers covered the ground around whatever little was left of the bird

Then the others attacked.

The six remaining birds shot into the air, their wings lifting them off the ground and sending a rushing wind in all directions. They didn't seem the least bit deterred by her utter annihilation of their comrade, and one by one they dived at her. The first one to reach her beat its wings to angle itself upward and its sharp talons shot out and wrapped around her arm. She staggered back, but kept her footing. To her benefit, the large bird blocked the others from attacking her as well. It's claws hadn't actually even torn any of her flesh, so the advantage was now hers. An advantage she was certain to make good use of.

The coils of her whip drew back, following her command. The nine tails of her whip all lashed out, targeting four of the birds at once. Three hit the Raven on her arm, punching through it and spraying black blood on its companions. She sent two more tails at each of the other three Raven's closest to her. The now-corpse on her arm threw off her aim, but still two of them struck their targets. The two birds, though only clipped, drew back and flew away, circling around for another attack.

She dropped her heavy burden and ducked under the talons aiming for her head, dancing away fluidly. Drawing back her weapon again, she struck out at the last two birds as they flew past her. Four of her lashes caught the further of the birds and wrapped around its wings, tearing them off. It squawked madly in pain as it plummeted into the darkness. The other bird took a hit to its side and started limping its way through the air. Still, it turned to attack again. She continued dancing around and away from them effortlessly, escaping every attack they sent at her. Each time she killed one, the frenzied attacks became easier to dodge, so she aimed to take out the two that were already injured.

The most wounded of the four remaining birds was hit, and it spiraled out of sight. As they continued to fly around her, coming in to peck at her and snap their claws, she singled out the weakest of the birds, now numbering only three, and aimed her next strike at it. The whip cracked the air, cutting through the bird and splitting its body in two. The other two swooped around her. She caught one with her whip, snapping it downward and smashing its body into the ground with enough force to crack the stone and send fragments flying through the air. Turning on the last one, she brought the whip down on its head and shattered its skull.

The battle hadn't begun quite the way she'd intended, but the outcome was all the same. She laughed to herself and moved on, hopping to the next platform. Perhaps this unexpected trip would be more entertaining than she'd thought.

* * *

Elisa stared off into the distance. "I think we might be dealing with big birds." She pointed into the distance where they could see Minou battling the Ravens. "I think Corbeau is getting a bit uppity, throwing her themed minions at us."

Tart held up her sword. "Then we must hurry! Elisa, Melissa, go find the exit! You must hurry there before Minou finds it! Riz and I will find the keys!"

Melissa nodded. "Understood!"

Elisa turned and hopped across to the next platform. "No time to waste! Let's get moving!"

As Melissa followed Elisa, Riz looked to Tart. "I'll do my best to keep you safe until we can return to France. I promise."

Tart tensed up. "What was that?" She whirled around, pointing her sword at the empty air behind them. "Riz, there's something else here with us."

Riz looked around for whatever had spooked Tart. "I don't see anything..." She narrowed her eyes at the place where Tart was pointing her sword. "But I'm sure there's probably something following us. Who knows what Corbeau has filled this place with."

Suddenly, out from the ground, a Ghost drifted into sight. It's transparent, ethereal body looked like a rotted corpse, its features too damaged to recognize as man or woman. Several unrecognizable organs hung out of its skeletal rib cage, visible through tattered clothes. All of it was but a vague image overlaid on the backdrop of this hell. Tart and Riz had prepared themselves to battle it, when two more appeared behind them.

While the appearance of two more distracted them, the first one floated closer to Tart and reached its hands out towards her neck. Reacting like lightning, Tart swung her sword around at the Ghost. It occurred to her a moment too late that she might not be able to even hit such a creature, but her concern was for nothing as the sword glowed brightly when it came into contact with the ethereal form. The magical sword struck the Ghost as if it were real, but still cut through it as though it was air. As the Ghost faded, wispy parts of its being flying in every direction, it let out a sorrowful moan.

Riz noted that Tart had already rid them of one foe, so she prepared herself to take on the other two. Her first instinct was to throw one of her knives at a Ghost, but she wasn't entirely convinced that such an attack would land on something non-corporeal. Maybe it had for Tart, but her weapons and Tart's weapon were quite different in many ways. She didn't want her weapons falling into the fire below them. Instead, holding one dagger in each hand, she slashed them across the chest of the nearest apparition. It fell apart under her attack, almost like it was a weak and frail mortal human being. She turned to the last one, but saw that Tart would get to it first.

As Tart closed in on her target, it swiped its ghostly, bony hand at her. It must have sensed how powerful she was, and was backing away as it struck out. The attack amounted to nothing more than patting the armor on her chest. It was enough to ward Tart away, however, and she jumped back from it. Her moment to strike had been wasted. Riz leaped in after it, swiping both daggers at it and severing its arm. The limb floated on its own for a second before disintegrating. The Ghost turned on her and reached for her throat with its other hand, but she simply stepped back away from it. That was when Tart moved back in and cleaved it in half. The two parts of the Ghost floated off into the void as it fell apart and vanished.

Riz shook her head as she sheathed her daggers. "That wasn't too difficult to face, with each other helping, but something tells me we've just barely seen the start of what Corbeau can throw at us."

Tart nodded. "We should keep moving." A glint of determination shined from her eyes. "We'll cut through anything we encounter along the way."


End file.
